Beach wedding planning fiasco. What to do?

I was hoping to get married in a land far, far away, but budget constraints and parents would have me looking a bit closer to home. Lucky for me, home is where many people go for a destination wedding! Santa Cruz, CA is a beautiful beach location, but I haven't the faintest idea if it's more cost effective to do it this way.

I know renting a public beach should be fairly inexpensive (compared to places that are equipped for weddings) but then I'm on my own for party rentals, like chairs, tent, tables, plates, etc…

I'd like to have my wedding and my reception in the same area. What I want to do it rent a large tent with side walls (something like this: http://www.mendocinocoastevents.com/images/PacificStarWedding2.jpg ) and furnish it with tables and chairs for 50 people, and a small dance floor.

My biggest problems are this:
*Finding a beach in the area that allows alcohol and open containers in the permit (most of the ones I've been finding expressly forbid it). I've tried googling private beaches in the area without much luck.

*Knowing what I need to order. For example I can find pricing on tents but I have no idea realistically what size I'll need. What kind of dinnerware should I be getting, and how much of it? These are all things that boggle my mind.

*Finding rentable portapotties in the area that aren't what you'd find on a construction site. I've heard of ones that are nice, with sinks and flushing toilets and everything, but I can't figure out where to rent them in the Bay Area.

*Knowing what obstacles I'm going to be facing this way. On the one hand it seems like I could be saving a bucket of money, on the other it seems like it could quickly run out of my price range.

Anybody that could help me out with any or all of my questions would be greatly appreciated. I just feel like I'm in over my head.
All-inclusive places would be great, but as BUStudent pointed out, they're very pricey. On top of just charging you to rent the place, you're charged for food, drinks, tax, tip, cake cutting fees, corkage fees, and some places require you get liability insurance. You're allotted a certain amount of time, and that time also includes set up and clean up. Prices on weekdays also vary from weekend prices.

I've googled as much as I can google. I've gone through The Knot, herecomestheguide, and every wedding resource I can find. I was hoping for somebody with personal experience that could give me a nudge in the right direction.

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